STRIS Season 6+

31. Bella

Street walked into the kitchen. "She said it, babe, she said 'dada'. I swear," Street insisted.

"You're delusional. She can barely speak," Chris replied taking the blender off of the base and poured the smoothie into 2 glasses.

"So, Liam definitely said 'mama' yesterday, but it's impossible that Erika said 'dada'? That doesn't seem right," Street respond.

"Amor, you were there. You heard him say it, and besides, they're twins not clones. They're developing differently. I bet you Erika is gonna be the first one to crawl," Chris insisted.

"I refuse to bet on this. I somehow keep losing," Street said resigned.

"You keep losing, because you keep being wrong, but I don't mind. I'd be happy to place a bet on who crawls first," Chris replied with an eyebrow raised.

"What are the stakes?" Street asked.

Chris' phone buzzed and she checked it.

"To be continued, but looks like we gotta go," Chris said.

—————-

Street came out of the burning building holding a little girl. He walked over to Chris and handed the little girl to his captain. The child clung to Chris and buried her head into Chris' shoulder. Chris started stroking her back to calm her down.

"You're gonna be okay, sweetie," Chris said in a calm voice. She silently looked to Street who walked away to get rid of his tactical gear. When he returned, Chris sweetly said to the girl, "Okay, my friend here is gonna take you to the paramedics and make sure that you're okay. Alright?"

The girl said "No," and buried her face in Chris' neck. Chris looked to Street and then carried the child over to the ambulance. When Chris sat the girl down to be looked at, she immediately reached for Chris' hand and squeezed it tightly.

The paramedic completed the exam quickly and found that she was unharmed.

"What's your name, kiddo?" Chris asked as she tucked a loose strand of hair behind the girl's ear.

"My name is Isabella, but you can call me Bella," she replied.

"It's really nice to meet you, Bella. I'm Chris....can you tell me, where are your parents?"

"I don't have any. I live in a foster home with 8 other kids. Right there," Bella replied and pointed at the house that was being hosed down by firefighters.

"Alright. How old are you?"

"I'm gonna be six years old in 28 days," Bella proudly shared.

"Wow! 28 days! That's exciting!" Chris replied enthusiastically.

"Chris, where is my foster family?" Bella asked and looked around.

"I don't know yet, Bella, but why don't I take you back to the police station. We can have juice boxes," Chris offered.

"Do you have any crayons? I like to color," Bella shared.

"Of course I have crayons! So, what do you say? Can we go?" Chris asked.

Bella nodded her head.

Chris stood up, and Bella kept a strong grip on Chris' hand as she followed her to Chris' car.

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Chris and Bella were coloring on the floor of Chris' office. When Street approached, he heard them laughing, and he almost felt guilty coming in. He entered the office and smiled.